It is mainly women who pick tea. Women are said to be more skilled pluckers compared to men, due to their more detailed plucking. They pick only the top leaves which are the ones that give the best flavor. Men tend to be too rough in their plucking. An experienced tea picker can pick between 30 and 35 kg of buds per day. For the most beautiful teas, you pick “two leaves and a bud” – the middle shoot and the top two side leaves. Legend has it that the best Darjeeling teas – the “champagne of teas” – are picked with a virgin hand at dawn.

There is a big difference between how much and how often a harvest takes place. In the low located areas, they harvest the entire year, while they only harvest four times a year on the slopes of the Himalayas. First flush, which is the first pluck after the tea bush has rested, is often said to be the best and finest pluck. The first Darjeeling pick has always been eagerly awaited in tea circles, and since the clipper days has been the subject of a competition to see who could bring the first flush tees home the fastest. Today, often only four or five days pass, from the harvesting of the first pluck and until it reaches Europe.

Few people know that all teas are descended from one and the same plant. The original botanical name is Camellia sinensis (L.O Kuntze), and the plant was first observed in China. The Swedish botanist Carl von Linnaeus was the first to classify the plant, and the Camellia botanical family tree today includes over 250 species of evergreens. Camellia sinensis is often called the Chinese plant, and it is cuttings from it that have given life to all the varieties of tea plants known today. Camellia sinensis can grow up to 5 meters tall, and originally grew mainly in China, Tibet and Japan, but later also in India and Sri Lanka. This plant can advantageously be cultivated for up to 100 years, and it is stable in mountainous areas with cool nights. When we pour water over the leaves of Camellia sinensis, and its closely related tea varieties, we are talking about tea. The leaves of the tea bush are dark green and glossy on the surface. Not seldom flowers grow from the bush, but this flowering is best avoided, since, despite its beauty, it usually provides a less productive harvest. The tea bush also makes a small, nutmeg-like fruit that contains plant oil, but this oil is hardly extracted. The leaves are hard and grow best if the climate is hot and humid. Soil is also of great importance for the growth. An acidic soil provides ideal growth conditions for the plant. The daily temperatures should preferably be between 10 and 30 degrees and the rainfall should be approximately 200-250 cm per year. The plant therefore grows best in a tropical and subtropical climate.

The altitude of the sea also has great significance in terms of the flavour complexity. The higher up, the plant grows, the slower the new top leaves grow. The tea bush has no problem with growing at heights at even 2,800 meters. The level of productivity of the harvest is, of course, significantly less, but the quality is often much higher though. The best qualities are the so-called high grown teas, which grow at over 1000 meters in height. Whether you’re talking about white, green, oolong or black the, all of it comes from one plant. The result is determined by climate, altitude, soil, season and after-care. The age of the plant also plays a significant role. Older plants usually provide a more complex and interesting bouquet, and certain tea plants can be up to 150 years old.